Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed generally to mobile communication networks and, more particularly, to a system and method for controlling paging cycles in a wireless network.
Description of the Related Art
Wireless devices, such as cell phones, mobile computers, and the like, communicate with a network using a wireless connection between the wireless device and some form of wireless interface, such as a base station, wireless gateway, access point, or the like. The wireless device is said to be in the “wake mode” when it is registered with the network and is actively transmitting and/or receiving data.
To conserve battery power, the network can allow a wireless device to go into an “idle mode” or sleep mode if the wireless device is inactive for a predetermined period of time. While operating in an idle mode, the wireless device generally powers down transmitters and receivers to conserve battery power. However, the wireless device activates periodically to check for any incoming transmissions.
In a typical embodiment, a base station periodically transmits paging data to indicate to a particular wireless device that downlink traffic is available for the wireless device. When the wireless device periodically becomes active, it detects the paging message and reenters the wake mode to actively communicate with the wireless network once again.
Those skilled in the art will appreciate that a large traffic volume will result in a correspondingly large number of paging message from a base station. In addition to communication congestion and delays caused by a large number of paging message, the call set-up time for wireless devices reentering the wake mode further increases the possibility of congestion in the wireless network. Therefore, it can be appreciated that there is a significant need for a system and method to control paging in a wireless network. The present disclosure is directed to techniques to provide this, and other advantages, as will be apparent from the following detailed description and accompanying figures.